Fresh off a 9 city roadshow, we have seen how the event industry is evolving since the pandemic. We begun seeing the effects when contracting with venues. Prior years you could negotiate waived meeting room rentals with achievement of food and beverage spend; however, in most of our locations we were still required to pay a rental fee and many with substantial increases. That is not the only change we have seen in venues. Menu prices have increased. When speaking with hotels, their purchasing departments have seen a rise in cost of goods; therefore, forcing them to increase the cost to the customer.
Break menus have more individually packaged options. Less buffets and more family style meals, allowing attendees to stay seated at a safe distance. Some hotels require reservations in the fitness centers, have contactless check-ins or limited hours and capacities in food and beverage outlets. Many have added housekeeping fees and mandatory porterage charges for group bookings.
In our search to find one transportation vendor for all 9 cities to handle airport transfers, many vendors lacked driver and vehicle inventory. Some had to sell off inventory in order to survive 2020. Drivers were also laid off forcing them to find new careers and with the economy still not in full swing we are seeing a struggle for companies to expand their staffing. Often seeing the same staffing scenario when booking group dinners in nearby restaurants.
It’s been unique to experience the event industry evolving and we are grateful for our clients. Very rewarding to see attendees connecting in person again. As an event planner we are constantly reminded it’s important to be flexible and adapt to change. The show must go on.
